Call centre set up to resolve industry's power problems in MP

INDORE: Ahead of the Global Investors'Summit (GIS) in Madhya Pradesh, the electricity department has finally paid heed to complaints by industrialists of frequent power outages in the industrial belt of Pithampur. The electricity department has started a 24/7 call centre to register complaints, with a commitment to resolving the situation in a maximum time of two hours.

Industrialists of Pithampur, one of the largest industrial belts in the state, claim that power breakdowns happen 3-4 times a day varying from a few minutes to 2-3 hours.

The call centre called 'Twarit' has a four digit number (1912) and is accessible round the clock. All calls to Twarit will be answered by an operator who after locating the fault will intimate the in charge lineman.

After running a pilot project, the call centre was officially made operational on October 18, according to data from the electricity board.

Gautam Kothari, president, Pithampur Audhyogik Sangathan said, "Finally the department has paid serious attention to our problem. This is a good step at trying to resolve complaints as early as possible. But a lot of improvement in infrastructure is required."

Power failure in July, August and until September 12 was 542 minutes, 451 minutes and 648 minutes respectively, according to data provided by the Sangathan.

Industrialists claimed that manufacturing units are the worst hit due to frequent power breakdowns as it leads to energy and production loss.

They said the success of the call centre will depend on proper implementation and monitoring of the situation. Akash Tripathi, CMD, Madhya Pradesh Paschim Kshetra Vidyut Vitaran Company Ltd. (MPPKVVCL) said, "This model will help in locating faults and resolving the issue at the earliest. In most of the cases, the complainer fails to reach the authorised official and resolving the issue takes much longer."

Tripathi said, a proper back up system has been placed in case any field official or line man is not present.

After resolving the issue, the line man will have to send an SMS to the department about closing the issue, the electricity department said.

The department has deployed 12 additional line men in Pithampur and two new vehicles have been allotted to the region.

Tripathi said, "To improve electricity in Pithampur, we are also taking up maintenance work in the region as the number of feeders is over loaded."